this is not john mccain, this is mitt romney. when it comes to on the ground activities, that's the first fact to remember. if you look at poll after poll, republicans and conservatives are excited about their nominee, especially after his performance at the debates. that's the first step. second step is that some of the best veterans in our party at the rnc with rick wily, at the romney campaign are running the ground efforts. it's a vanity statistic to say how many paid staff you have in the state. that's important, but also important is the enthusiasm and who is managing it. if you talk to the obama people. i was in texas asking obama people involved in the ground game there. is it the same feeling as in 2008? this is not the same. >> based on early numbers we are seeing in terms of relatively voting, whether it's ohio, iowa, here in florida, if we are using early voting as a gauge for enthusiasm, imperical evidence would suggest the president has a substantial advantage. >> you're right, but it's the benchmark. what republica